A Little Star To Guide the Way
by Chess-Blackfyre
Summary: Five hours after the destruction of Romulus, a child is born into an uncertain future for both her family and her people. Look out Alpha Quadrant, because a new t'Lareth just arrived (Part of the Romi Series)


_**2387**_

 _ **IRW Toval**_

 _ **5 hours after the destruction of Romulus**_

 _ **Prime Timeline**_

"Where's the goddamn doctor?!" Admiral t'Lareth yelled, helping her morbidly pregnant daughter into the medical bay. She probably shouldn't be shouting, given that it was obvious a lot of people were getting treated for very serious life-threatening injuries.

But fuck that her baby was having a baby and loosing her eye and her homeworld made Admiral Romisha t'Lareth one _very_ unhappy camper. She managed to scowl her way into getting Nalah a semi-private biobed.

"How could this be happening?" Nalah half-panicked. "I'm not due for another two weeks!"

"Your husband always was a bit impatient, looks like the little one will be taking after their father." Nalah had decided against learning the gender of the baby, claiming that it would be better if it was a surprise. Well, Romisha was pretty much done with surprises for the rest of her life.

"You could say that again." Nalah responded, cracking a smile.

"No, I'm just going to ask for the goddamn doctor again." There wouldn't be a problem if her husband, Jerrak, was there with them. The man was a damn fine doctor, he'd know what to do. Unfortunately, he was evacuating out a hospital at the time, and was in one of the civilian shuttles right now.

"All medical personnel are currently tending to more serious cases." The computer informed. "In double red-alert situations, childbirth has low priority. Regulations have most officers of Uhlan or higher able to perform—"

"Shut up." She ordered. The computer promptly shut up. "Dammit." It was true, officers were trained in doing basic medical procedures, including childbirth. Unfortunately, every spare hand aboard was busy trying to keep this bird in the air. The _Toval_ was an old ship, but a sturdy one. The hull strength wasn't keeping out the radiation from the supernova though, so the engineers were working double time to make sure the systems major systems weren't fried or seriously damaged. Luckily, Romisha (vaguely) recalled her own medical training. Support the head, unwrap the umbilical chord from the baby's neck if need be, don't cut the umbilical chord—

"Mother, I'm scared." Nalah whispered between deep breaths. Romisha grabbed her daughter's hand by way of reassurance. She had lost her husband today, along with her homeworld. The match had been a political one, but they had gotten along, if nothing else. Ekail was a good man, a good Centurion, and had been delighted at the prospect of being a father. Giving birth was terrifying enough, but to do it in an emergency situation and after the shock of loosing Romulus? Nalah was the strongest person Romisha knew to not just go catatonic.

"Admiral, we have an incoming transmission from one of the shuttles—"

"My daughter is in labor can it wait?!"

"Ma'am, it's your husband."

"Put him on." Nalah demanded.

" _Romisha, Nalah, I'm sorry I can't be there but_ —"

"Daddy, I'm scared." Nalah began to cry. She should be ashamed, but right now she was just scared. This morning she woke up the Romulan Ambassador and the heir of a great House of Romulus. Almost 16 hours later, Romulus and Remus were gone, her husband was dead and she was selfishly bringing her child into an unknown future. All she wanted to do was crawl into her father's arms and cry.

"I know star, I know. But you need to be strong for me? Not just for me, but for that little baby that needs you now more than ever. Romisha—"

"She's in labor, Jerrak. Ekail's dead and all the doctors here are busy with more serious cases. I'm going to need you to guide me through it."

"You, the great Admiral t'Lareth asking for help? Never thought I'd see the day."

"I love you too, husband but our grandchild—"

"Alright, first thing's first, can you see the head?"

Romisha left her daughter's side to awkwardly look between her legs. "Yes, yes I can."

"Okay, now Nalah, I know this is going to hurt, little star, but I'm going to need you to push. Can you do that?"

She shook her head, even though they only had audio. "I can do that."

First the baby crowned, then Romisha could see the baby's pointed little ears. "Okay, the head's out, now what?"

"Now, gently cradle the baby's head, and get ready to catch because the rest is going to come out quick."

"Understood."

"Mom?"

"Hm?"

"How does—is the baby-?"

"She looks absolutely perfect." The Admiral assured.

"She?" Father and daughter asked as one.

"Call it a hunch." The Admiral assured.

Less than a minute later, the sharp cries of new life could be heard all through the medical bay.

Stripping off her uniform jacket, Romisha carefully wrapped the soft cloth around her granddaughter. It was then that a nurse could finally make time for them.

"Admiral t'Lareth, Ambassador t'Lareth, my apologies but—"

"You missed the exciting part." Nalah informed, panting. The nurse made quick work of cutting the umbilical chord and checking out the newborn

"What is it, what have we got?"

"Congratulations Ambassador, you have a healthy baby girl. I'm concerned about the radiation exposure—" Admiral and Ambassador indicating she should be quiet.

"A girl?" Doctor Jarrek's voice could be heard once again.

"Yes, a girl. She's so beautiful. Daddy, she's so beautiful. You should be here."

"I know little star, I know." He assured.

"What are you going to name her?" Romisha asked.

Nalah looked up at her mother. Months of planning and looking at names went out the nearest airlock. She had considered T'Kohl after her grandmother or N'alae after a favorite aunt, but none of them really felt right. They didn't feel like her child's name. Her father had always called her 'little star'. Well, looks like she now had a little star of her own. "Saeihr. Saeihr Octavia." She decided.

"Saeihr Octavia t'Lareth." Admiral Romisha repeated, brushing back her daughter's sweaty hair and placing a kiss on her forehead.

"Good choice, little star." Jarrek praised, before a crash could be heard.

"Sir? Sir!" A voice called in concern at the other end of the line before shutting off.

It was a full twenty minutes before contact could be re-established. A dirty, blood-stained doctor in medical scrubs greeted the t'Lareth family, not Jarrek.

"Where is my husband?" Romisha asked, instantly on high alert.

"My apologies Admiral, your husband sustained series injuries in the—" the doctor swallowed. "He's gone, ma'am. There was nothing we could do."

"He refused treatment?" Romisha asked, knowing exactly that was something her pig-headed, golden-hearted husband would do.

"Doctor Jarrek didn't say anything was even wrong...He saved over 12 people's lives." Romisha had always known that her husband was a better person than she ever was. And the fool had to go and die proving it.

"Where is he, can you—" Nalah started as Saeihr began to cry.

"I'm sorry Madam Ambassador, but we had to make room for other patients. Your father's vital organs were transplanted, and put to good use." The baby continued crying. Admiral Romisha was tempted to join her. Instead she merely mumbled an acknowledgement, switched off the communications channel, and went to her daughter's side.

Jarrek and Romisha were both of High Houses, the match having been secured by their parents. He was a good man, too good for the world they operated in. It was why he had scorned politics and gone into medicine. On their wedding night, he asked her if they could perhaps be friends some day. She told him maybe, someday. With her career in the Imperial Fleet, they rarely saw each other. Romisha supposed her flirtation and…liaison with Commander Spock had been born of curiosity and emotional rebellion against her duty to her family. She'd been delighted to meet her intellectual equal, even if he was only expressing interest in her as a distraction so Captain Kirk could steal her cloaking device (yes she was still bitter about that why do you ask?).

Affairs were common enough among both the Elite and the Fleet, so when her complete report of the Enterprise Incident made its way through High Command, no one mentioned it. She told Jarrek anyway, because he deserved to know. He looked…disappointed, and asked her why she was telling him this.

For the first time in a long time, Romisha was completely honest. "We're married. You asked me once if we could eventually get to a place where we could be friends. Friends are honest with one another. And if nothing else, I never want to lie to you, Jarrek."

He smiled, and kissed her on the forehead. They never talked about The Enterprise Incident again. Not even when Ambassador Spock showed up on her doorstep almost a century later with his Re-Unification ideas. Jarrek actually talked to Spock at length on the subject.

They didn't actually say 'I love you' to one another until almost 75 years into their marriage. It didn't change anything, but after ¾ of a century, it was nice to know.

As she moved gently forward to stroke her ears, little Saeihr reached up and grabbed her finger. Saeihr Octavia t'Lareth, not yet an hour old grabbing her grandmother's finger as if—as if she was the one in need to comforting.

It was then that High Commander Romisha t'Lareth came to a decision. Fuck the Empire, fuck duty, fuck responsibility to the state. She'd only told Jarrek she loved him a handful of times, and now he was dead. She wouldn't make the same mistake with his daughter and granddaughter— _ **their**_ daughter and granddaughter.

Saeihr was going to grow up surrounded by people that loved her. She would grow up as safe and as happy as Romisha could force the world around her to be. Saeihr wouldn't be forced into political marriages or used as a pawn in some great game.

Jarrek had always said that their people needed to start in a new direction. Perhaps that new direction could start with the life of a single child.


End file.
